


Tea and Sympathy for the Devil

by catsplosion



Category: Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Nobility, Other, Politics, Power Plays
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-25
Updated: 2014-05-25
Packaged: 2018-01-26 10:00:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1684301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catsplosion/pseuds/catsplosion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A companion piece to Run and Hide and Seek.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tea and Sympathy for the Devil

**Author's Note:**

> I asked myself why Regina Cousland would prevent Alistair from claiming the throne. This is the answer I got.

Anora greeted Regina at the door to her suite. “I’m glad you could join me.”

“It’s an honor, my queen,” she said sweetly, bowing.

Anora gestured to a nearby settee near a table where tea had already been laid out. To her surprise, the queen poured her own tea; she followed suit.

“Regina, please. Let’s not stand on ceremony. I had hoped we could speak frankly with each other.”

She took a deep breath and a calculated risk. “Alright. You want me to ensure your continued reign,” she said calmly.

Anora’s smile surprised her. “That’s more like it. And yes, I do. Do you honestly think Alistair is a better choice? You are nobility yourself; you understand the complexities of politics far better than he ever will.”

“Then I guess it’s good that he’d have me to help him.”

The queen gave her a strange look. “Do you really think you can uphold this pretense for the rest of your life?”

She swallowed. “What makes you so sure it’s pretense? Alistair is a good man, a skilled warrior, and every bit as handsome as our fallen king.”

“It’s a shame our families didn’t spend more time together, Regina. We could have been fast friends. I think you and I are very much alike.”

“You seem to think you know me,” she said warily.

“I see a woman who’s smart, driven, strong, pragmatic, and fearless. Am I wrong?”

Regina responded with a shrug and a wry smile.

“I imagine a woman like you could no more fall in love with a man like Alistair than I could fall in love with Cailan.”

Regina almost choked on her tea. “What?”

“I loved Cailan, of course. He was a fine man - as is Alistair, I'm sure. But fine men are at least slightly more common than dragons. If that’s what you wanted, you could have taken your pick long before all this.”

“You’re saying that you married Cailan so you could be queen, and you think I intend to do the same?”

“We’re both clever women. Too clever to be interested in men, to be sure." She smiled at Regina again, and something in those crystalline eyes quickened her pulse. "Men are so easy, so obvious. Even men like Maric's sons, who appreciate the value of strong women, are so easily wooed."

Sighing, Regina nodded in assent. "I certainly can't argue that."

Anora set down her cup. "Give me the kingdom, and I shall make you my advisor. Think of what we could do for Ferelden, with no men to stand in our way."

Regina studied her carefully. "Why would I trust you?"

She shrugged. "I think we understand each other well enough."

She shook her head. "You think I would give up the crown so easily?"

Anora's sharp glare could bring a nation to its knees. "Would you rather give up your freedom?"

"I'll need to think about it," she said, getting to her feet.

"Of course." Anora rose and walked her to the door. "Sleep well, Ser Regina. I shall see you at the Landsmeet."


End file.
